The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with (a) pharmaceutical companies and (b) the Royal Colleges on making colchicine available on the NHS for the treatment of cancer.
George Freeman
No such discussions have taken place. We understand that a potential treatment for cancer derived from colchicine is currently in development and clinical trials are due to start in 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, by when he plans for new drug treatments for sepsis and Acute Respiratory Disease Syndrome to be available on the NHS.
George Freeman
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently developing a clinical guideline on the recognition, diagnosis and management of severe sepsis. The guideline will consider the full range of treatment options for sepsis. NICE currently plans to publish this guidance in July 2016.
There are no plans for NICE to develop technology appraisal guidance on the use of new drug treatments for sepsis or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).
NHS England has advised that there have been many trials of new treatments for ARDS but no consistent benefit has been found in any of these.
In the absence of NICE guidance, funding decisions for individual treatments should be made by the relevant National Health Service commissioner, based on an assessment of the available evidence. Commissioners are also required to have processes in place for the consideration of exceptional funding requests.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have received atrial fibrillation in the last five years.
Jane Ellison
This information is not collected centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with Castleman disease in each of the last five years.
George Freeman
Information on the number of diagnoses of Castleman disease is not held centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent steps he has taken to prevent pub closures.
Anna Soubry
This Government is committed to supporting a fair and flourishing pubs sector. We have scrapped the beer duty escalator, and at Budget 2015 we cut beer duty for the third year in a row. Through the Community Right to Bid, we are giving communities in England a fairer chance to bid to buy and run their pub by listing it as an Asset of Community Value. We are introducing a statutory Pubs Code and an independent Adjudicator to govern the relationship between large pub-owning companies and the thousands of tenants that run tied pubs across England and Wales. These measures will help to ensure the pubs industry continues to thrive, to the benefit of all those who work hard to make the pub the mainstay of our communities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make available on the NHS cyber-knife technology to treat cancer and reduce time spent in hospital by cancer patients.
Jane Ellison
Cyber-knife technology is one of three treatment platforms that can be used to treat a number of cancers, together with some benign conditions. The treatment platforms deliver stereotactic radiotherapy, both to the body (stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy) which is commissioned for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, and to the head (stereotactic radiosurgery/radiotherapy) for a range of cancer indications covered by clinical commissioning policies which can be found at:
www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/spec-services/npc-crg/group-d/d05/
It should be noted that NHS England commissions on the basis of clinical indication and not specifically for treatment platforms. The choice of treatment platform used is ultimately a decision made by trusts themselves.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with Lyme disease in each of the last five years.
Jane Ellison
The total number of laboratory confirmed Lyme disease cases for each of the last five years is shown in Table 1.
Table 1: Total number of laboratory confirmed Lyme disease cases for each of the last five years:
|
Year |
Total number of Lyme disease cases laboratory confirmed |
|
2010 |
905 |
|
2011 |
959 |
|
2012 |
1,040 |
|
2013 |
878 |
|
2014 |
735 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the sale of meat and milk from cloned animals.
Jane Ellison
The sale in the European Union of meat and milk from cloned animals is subject to risk assessment under the EU Novel Foods Regulation. These Regulations are currently being revised and have been discussed at a European Council Working Group level, where the Food Standards Agency represents the United Kingdom. The European Parliament has now voted in favour of maintaining the risk assessment of products from cloned animals under the Novel Food Regulations, and the Council is expected to be asked for its formal view shortly.
The European Commission has put forward separate and more specific proposals on the cloning of farm animals and the food derived from them. The discussions on these proposals have yet to gain momentum.
There is currently no authorisation for any meat or milk from cloned animals to be in the UK food chain.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps he has taken to ensure data protection legislation is up to date; and what guidance he has issued to companies on compliance with such legislation.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Government takes the protection of personal data very seriously and is committed to making sure that the data protection legislation is up to date. The Government is currently negotiating a new EU data protection package and it is important that it meets the needs of both individuals and of business.
Compliance with the Data Protection Act is regulated and enforced by the Information Commissioner’s Office which maintains guidance relating to the Act. Guidance for companies on compliance with the Act can be found at the ICO’s website: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what criteria are applied for the use of intraoperative radiotherapy for treating cancer by the NHS.
Jane Ellison
NHS England does not currently commission intraoperative radiotherapy for the treatment of cancer. To date it has been undertaken in a small number of centres in England as part of a clinical trial.